Italian press review – The future of Formula 1 on Qatar podium: Ferrari absent. How the Italian media reacted to Ferrari's performance in Qatar.

Charles Leclerc and that “Oh my God”
Thirty-three seconds behind the McLaren in a race not about management but pure performance, with only one intervention by the Safety Car in the early stages of the race. The verdict that emerged in Lusail, Qatar, is a real indictment for Scuderia Ferrari, as witnessed by Charles Leclerc’s team radio, where he commented with an “Oh my God” on the gap communicated to him by the race engineer, Xavier Marcos, after the checkered flag.

In Japan, Charles Leclerc had already said that he would only worry if McLaren confirmed their form in Qatar, a confirmation that arrived in bold letters. Furthermore, starting from pole position, Lando Norris would have likely contested the victory with Max Verstappen’s Red Bull until the checkered flag.

“There is a lot of future on the Qatar Grand Prix podium, and unfortunately, Ferrari is absent,” reads the critique by Fulvio Solms in the Italian daily newspaper Il Corriere dello Sport. The sports daily based in Rome defines Charles Leclerc’s fifth-place finish as “a mere soup” that he reached after a race in which the Monegasque “suffered unimaginably with the tires.”

Meanwhile, the editorial in Il Resto del Carlino, titled ‘That Prancing Horse Lost in the Dunes,’ says: “When Hamilton went mad at the start, launching himself at his teammate Russell, the faint hope emerged that Ferrari could recover some points against Mercedes. Instead, George Russell, who started last, comfortably caught up with Charles Leclerc. It shows that Ferrari’s journey in the desert is far from the Promised Land.”

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This exponential growth of McLaren and the setback suffered by Mercedes in Lusail (in performance, not in final points) dampen the optimism that had grown at Ferrari regarding the possibility of finishing second in the Constructors’ Championship. On one hand, McLaren’s performance suggests that if Ferrari follows a similar design path as Red Bull and McLaren, they can aim for the top in 2024. However, in Qatar, the SF-23 lost over 30 seconds due to graining.